WWE Extreme Rules 2009 Review

From November 23, 2009.

It's nearly summer time and that can only mean one thing, an Extreme Rules PPV. At Extreme Rules 2009, superstars such as Batista, Randy Orton, Edge, and Jeff Hardy looked to leave the PPV with belts around their waists.

Match 1: United States Championship - Kofi Kingston (c) vs. MVP vs. William Regal vs. Matt Hardy
Opening up the show was the United States Championship match between these four men. To be honest, I wasn't expecting much from this and unfortunately, I was correct. From the start to the finish, this match was a huge cluster and it just seemed so lost.
Winner: Kofi Kingston
Rating: *1/4

Match 2: No Holds Barred - Intercontinental Championship - Rey Mysterio (c) vs. Chris Jericho
After their amazing match at Judgment Day, expectations were high for this one and they definitely did not disappoint. From Mysterio leaping through the second rope to hit Jericho to Jericho banging a steel chari into the steep steps, this match was packed with high octane action. What really boosted this match was it's finish which saw Jericho pull off Mysterio's mask and then pin Mysterio to win another Intercontinental Championship. After a boring opening match, the following match had to be a good one and this match was more than just good.
Winner: Chris Jericho
Rating: ****

Match 3: Samoan Strap - Umaga vs. CM Punk
In another Judgment Day rematch, CM Punk takes on Umaga in a Samoan Strap match. While the match itself wasn't as good as their Judgment Day bout, it was still a pretty damn good one. This match also needed a CM Punk win and that's exactly what we saw when he nailed Umaga with the GTS to which he then touched all the turnbuckles to win the match.
Winner: CM Punk
Rating: *3/4

Match 4: Hardcore - ECW Championship - Christian (c) vs. Tommy Dreamer vs. Jack Swagger
The fourth match of the night was the ECW Championship match which had the stipulation that if Dreamer lost this match, we would leave the WWE. The match quickly turned into a fight when weapons were brought into the ring and chaos happened. After a bunch of nasty weapon shots and some sluggish moments, Dreamer hit th DDT on Swagger to win the ECW Championship. While this wasn't a very good match, it was still pretty good and it was really cool to see Dreamer win the ECW Championship.
Winner: Tommy Dreamer
Rating: **1/4

Match 5: Handicap Hog Pen - Miss WrestleMania - Vickie Guerrero & Chavo Guerrero (c) vs. Santino Marella
Once we were done watching an emotional moment, we got to this garbage that saw Vickie Guerrero defend her ridiculous Miss WrestleMania title against Santino Marella. Tihs was just your typical Santino match with a hog pen added to the mix. The crowd didn't like it, I didn't like it, and I doubt you'll like it. Santino eventually won to win back the Miss WrestleMania title.
Winner: Santino Marella
Rating: n/a

Match 6: Steel Cage - WWE Championship - Randy Orton (c) vs. Batista
Before the event began, news broke out on the internet that Batista was once again injured and would be missing in action for a few months. However, this match went on and lasted about only 7 minutes and to much of everyone's shock, Batista defeated Orton to capture the WWE Championship. While many may not agree with me, I thought this match was very well done. Batista is supposed to be an angry beast who wants to kill Orton and it wouldn't make much sense if this match lasted over 20 minutes.
Winner: Batista
Rating: **3/4

Match 7: Submission - John Cena vs. The Big Show
The Big Show and John Cena have never really had a great match and this one was overwhelmingly awful. The match went on for over 20 minutes and it saw Cena lock Show in boring submissions and The Big Show locking Cena in boring submissions. The match and the crowd were dead and it didn't make much sense to give these two over 20 minutes of PPV time. The only real good thing to come out of this match was the decent ending where Cena locked in the STF using leverage from the bottom rope.
Winner: John Cena
Rating: *

Match 8: Ladder - World Heavyweight Championship - Edge (c) vs. Jeff Hardy
After the boring Submission match, it was time for the Ladder match where expectations were through the roof. Their feud goes back to the early days in which they competed in other Ladder matches with their brothers. Forward 10 years and we are watching the same two guys compete against one another for the World Heavyweight Championship. The match started off a bit slow but then it picked up the pace about 5 minutes in as they destroyed each other with the ladder. The two continued to brawl and finally, they brought out a 20 foot ladder in which they both climbed and eventually, they both fell onto another ladder wich was placed between the ring and the barricade. They finally took it back into the ring where they both climbed the ladder to try to retreive the World Heavyweight Championship. Hardy then dropped Edge's legs between the ladder and grabbed the title right in front of his face. The finish was very memorable of the WrestleMania 24 Money in the Bank match which saw CM Punk hang up Jericho in the ladder. The match definitely lived up to it's hype as the two landed some incredible spots. However, the Ladder match at No Mercy 2008 was definitely the better one. Still, this was an amazing match that I highly suggest you check out.
Winner: Jeff Hardy
Rating: ****1/4

Match 9: World Heavyweight Championship - Jeff Hardy (c) vs. CM Punk
Immediately following the Ladder match, CM Punk's music hit as he then cashed in his Money in the Bank contract which he received at the WrestleMania 25 Money in the Bank Ladder match! Punk hit the GTS on Hardy but Hardy kicked out at the count of 2! Hardy then went for the roll-up on Punk but that failed as Punk kicked out of it. After, Punk hit Hardy with a second GTS to capture his second World Heavyweight Championship.
Winner: CM Punk
Rating: n/a

Overall Show Thoughts and Rating:
This was a great show if you look on the SmackDown & ECW side of things. The Raw side of things was absolutely horrible with everything being boring, bad, or just plain decent. However, the show was saved by an amazing Ladder match, an awesome Intercontinental Championship match, an emotional ECW Championship match, and a jaw dropping finish to the PPV.
Rating: 7/10